Turner Motorsport Takes Delivery Of New BMW M6 GT3s
In the run-up to the BMW Season Review in the BMW Museum, Will Turner had another very special appointment at BMW Motorsport in Munich.
The team principal of Turner Motorsport received the two BMW M6 GT3s, with which he will line up in 2016 in the GTD class of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (WTSCC) in North America.
One of his regular drivers will be BMW works driver Jens Klingmann, who gained valuable experience with the new car during testing.
“The moment I entered the foyer at BMW Motorsport and saw the two cars standing there with their covers on, it was like receiving a present at Christmas,” said Turner.
“I was excited, and the first season with the BMW M6 GT3 will certainly be exciting. Compared to the BMW Z4 GT3, it is a car with a completely different concept. I will also have a few new BMW drivers in the team. As such, a lot will be new, so it is hard to predict how quickly we will be up among the front-runners. However, I am impressed by the support offered by BMW Motorsport. Everyone is doing their best to make the project a success as quickly as possible.”
Magnus Racing Tests New Audi
Magnus Racing have taken delivery of their brand new Audi R8 LMS and are testing the car today
Park Place Close In On 2016 GTD Campaign
Park Place Motorsports team owner/driver Patrick Lindsey is close to announcing his full plans for the GT Daytona class. Park Place’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship program will see its relationship with Porsche continue, and add new drivers to the race-winning program.
“We’re working on the release right now, and can say we’ll be back with the #73 car with Porsche for the full season,” Lindsey (RIGHT) told Marshall Pruett. “We’ll have more news on who I’ll be driving with when everything is announced.”
One change involves the departure of Spencer Pumpelly, who co-drove with Lindsey in 2015, and helped the John Horton-led effort to its best season of results.
Talk within the IMSA paddock during the recent test at Daytona International Speedway has a factory-supplied Porsche driver set to fill Pumpelly’s shoes.
Teenage sports car driver Matt McMurry is known to have tested with Park Place towards the end of November, and could be part of the team’s driver lineup for 2016.
This story first appeared on Racer.com
Autometrics Set for NAEC Effort in GTD Porsche
After taking part in the recent test days at Daytona, Autometrics Motorsports has confirmed it is working toward running the #24 Porsche 997 GT3R in the North American Endurance Cup events as well as the possibility of other select races in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“The test was extremely useful as we had the opportunity to work on the set-up of the car on the Continental tires and while there were no official times, we believe the car is right on pace with the others at the test in the GTD field,” said Gordon Friedman, president of AMS. “We were encouraged by the test and believe that the 997, while not the latest model from Porsche, will be an extremely reliable platform – especially for the long endurance races that comprise the NAEC.”
Joe Toussaint, who owns the car, has been interested in racing it in IMSA since it was acquired in July of 2014. Toussaint and AMS raced the car in select Pirelli World Challenge GT-A races in 2015 but have been keen to participate in IMSA.
“I began discussions with Geoff Carter at IMSA and Jens Walther, president of Porsche Motorsports North America, in the summer of 2015 about running the car in IMSA,” said Toussaint. “I want to thank both Geoff and Jens for their help. I’m very excited that the car is eligible to race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Our goal is to run the car in the NAEC events.”
It is planned that both Toussaint and Cory Friedman (both bronze-rated drivers) will participate in the events. “We believe that the 997 platform is race proven and extremely reliable. We have already begun preparations for the race having sent the engine and transmission back to PMNA,” said Friedman. “We’re excited and believe we can have strong finishes in the races by utilizing the speed and reliability of the Porsche, driving smart and being ready to capitalize at the end of the races.
This story first appeared on Racer.com
